It is well known that filling product containers, such as potato chips bags and similar “snack food” containers, typically involves utilization of very large complex machines and systems. For example, a first machine of such a system receives a continuous stream of bagging material from a large roll of the material and processes the material around a sleeve to form a bag container. The first machine also usually includes a bag loading component to load a product into the bag and the machine then seals the product within the bag producing a plurality of “pillow” shaped containers moving through the first machine. As the containers leave the machine they are cut to form individual product containers.
For example, FIG. 1 shows a schematic, simplified drawing of a prior art container forming, filling and discharge machine at reference numeral 10. The machine 10 includes a product filling tube 12 for receiving flow of product to be secured within a container. A continuous bag stock roll 14 supplies bagging material 16 to the machine 10, and the machine 10 includes rollers 18 that guide the bagging material over a sleeve 20 while the machine 10 feeds a product portion 22 into the sleeve 20. The machine 10 then seals the bagging material 16 into a bag 24 or product container around the product portion 22, and then cuts the formed bag 24 from the bag stock 16 usually with heated jaws 25. The separated bags 24 are then fed into a receiver 26 of an inclined conveyor 28 having optionally side rails 29 and a conveyor drive 30 such as a motor, to deliver the separated bags 24 to a second machine (not shown) for packing the bags 24 into a case (not shown).
As the filled bags 24 are positioned upon the conveyor 28 they frequently have a random orientation and spacing between each bag. This presents several problems. First, known bag filling machines process the bag stock 16 into filled containers 24 at a fixed product delivery rate. However, as the containers 24 arrive at a second machine (not shown) to be deposited into packing cases, the second machine must deposit the bags 24 at varying delivery rates. This is because the bags 24 are placed within each case in a packing pattern to enhance efficiency of packing costs. Second, the depositing machine must deposit the bags 24 in a sequence of cases that typically flow along a conveyor within or adjacent the second machine. Consequently, the second machine or patterned depositor roust interrupt depositing of the bags 24 as the depositor moves to load a first case and then a next case. This interruption also results in a practical limit on a total rate of product transfer to the depositor. Efforts to increase the rate of transfer and packaging are constrained by limits of the patterned depositor's receipt of the bags 24. As a rate of transfer increases, necessary interruptions in transferring bags through the depositor causes ever increasing disruptions of the bags on the conveyor. Consequently, these disruptions result in an effective limit on the total rate of transfer.
A third problem associated with known package processing and packing systems is that the filled bags 24 are most often tested for proper sealing. This is usually done by sensing machines (such as pressure sensing plungers (not shown)) positioned along the inclined conveyor 28. Because the bags 24 have a random position on a conveyor 28, such sensing machines require substantial space on or adjacent the conveyors 28 and also require positioning guides or similar apparatus to properly align the bags 24 for sensing. This results in more potential disruption of the flow of the bags 24, an additional cost resulting from random positioning of the bags 24 on the conveyor 28.
It is known that such disruptions in flow of the containers 24 may cause a “mountaining up” of bags 24 adjacent the second machine leading to disruption of the automated system and requiring expensive human intervention. It is also known that such elaborate processing and packing systems have integrated complex and costly container alignment and positioning equipment adjacent the patterned depositor or second machine to automate resolution of the aforesaid problems.
Accordingly, there is a need for an efficient, inexpensive solution to these difficulties.